Whoosh whoosh whoosh —
The naval battle in the rain had completely begun.
At this moment, the privateer fleet was full of patrol ships. When the opponent was a model fleet, it was naturally not suitable for them to use the battle line tactic of the battleships lining up to bombard each other.
While the cannons in the firing angle were collectively shooting out raging flames.
The fleet made full use of their speed advantage and broke through the enemy's defenses.
The four battleships lined up in a line with 'Morning Star' in the lead. They were like a sharp knife, slashing toward the slave-transporting fleet from a 45-degree angle.
[Specifications] Displacement 2,340 tons, length 56.42 meters, width 14.90 meters, sail area 3,213 square meters, fixed crew 450, speed 12 knots (Monsoon Goddess and Ocean Current Horn not activated).
[Weapons] Two-layered cannon deck: 28 32-pound cannons, 28 24-pound cannons, and 2 24-pound bow and stern cannons.
Between the two sides of the battle, regardless of the data, 'Morning Star' had absolute dominance.
The speed of the other Grade 5 battleships that had been modified by Elvin was even faster than a fully loaded two-masted mixed sailboat.
When the fleet charged over, it was like a team of fast cavalry with the Elephant Knight as the vanguard!
Moreover, Elvin had also activated the effect of the [Secret Treasure of the Sea — Ocean Current Horn] at the same time, creating a high-speed ocean current under the assault fleet, allowing the fleet to accelerate once again.
Whoosh whoosh —
At this moment, it was as if the entire sky and sea had become their assistance.
"Reckless pirates!
Order: Adjust three compass points to the right.
Cannoneers, get ready. Open the cannons and fire parallel to them! "
On the flagship and vanguard ship, 'Saint Cruz Merchant'.
Captain Hobion saw that this group of pirates who had appeared out of nowhere actually dared to attack him, which belonged to the Santabarbia Company.
He was like a noble who had been offended by a beggar. There was a mix of disbelief and anger as he roared out his orders.
To a battleship, this was the most correct tactic. It could fully unleash its firepower advantage.
"How can they be so fast?!"
However, not long after he gave the order, he realized that the four battleships had already charged in front of him as if they were flying, inserting themselves into his formation.
They were so fast that his Grade 4 battleship could not even complete the tactical maneuver of turning to face them.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Orange-yellow cannons flashed in the rain.
The three Grade Five ships mainly used chain bullets and grapeshot bullets to kill and injure the people on the slave transporting ships, destroying the masts and restricting their mobility.
Plundering wasn't like fighting a war. If they sunk the enemy's ships, wouldn't they have to pay for their own ammunition as well?
As the main force of the fleet, the Morning Star aimed its cannons at the swollen bottom of the fourth-grade ship, the Saint Cruz Merchant.
The moment they passed each other.
"Fire!"
The heavy cruiser's 24-pound and 32-pound heavy artillery shells whizzed out one after another under the incredulous gazes of the opposing crew.
"Impossible!"
Thirty-two pounder cannons could only be equipped with battleships of rank three and above. Ordinary battleships would not be able to withstand their recoil. This was common knowledge.
It was clearly a cruiser, but it was equipped with so many 32-pound cannons. The crew of the battleship stared with wide eyes as if they had seen a ghost.
However, the Morning Star's cannoneers didn't care about their thoughts. They fired the cannons according to their tactical training.
Currently, the cruiser only had two continuous decks, and the topmost deck was designed to be open.
After predicting the weather, Elvin had already ordered the pirates to build a rainproof cover in advance to ensure that the cannons on the deck could fire normally.
It might not work in the pouring rain, but it was not a problem for a moderate rain like this, where the wind was not strong.
A few minutes later, both sides completely separated.
The results of the three cruisers were impressive. With just one ambush, they cut the slave transporting fleet's formation into pieces.
There were also two slave transporting ships whose masts had been cut off, and they had almost completely lost their mobility.
However …
"What's going on?!"
On the other hand, the Morning Star, whose main target was the battleship, was in an awkward position.
The time it took for them to pass through was extremely short. This was especially so for the pirate cannoneers. Although they had undergone emergency training, they could not reach the speed of the elite navy. On average, the 28 32-pound cannons only had time to fire once.
However …
Even when they left the firing range, the Saint Cruz Merchant was almost completely unscathed!
One had to know that the heavy cruiser was equipped with 32-pound cannons that could break the keel of an enemy ship at close range!
On the Morning Star, the captain of the cannoneers from the navy was so ashamed that he wanted to die. He felt that he had completely let down the captain's trust.
If not for the fact that they were still in a war, he might have pulled out his gun and killed himself.
However, Elvin also noticed the abnormality on the enemy ship from another angle.
Every time the cannonball was supposed to land on the enemy's battleship, the layer of solidified Spiritual Light that enveloped the battleship would change in brightness.
Every time it flickered, it would create all sorts of accidents, causing the cannonball to miss. This was especially so when the target was the relatively small stern.
'There's indeed something strange about the bow of the fourth-grade ship!'
After coming to this conclusion in his heart, when the two fleets passed by each other, Elvin issued a new order.
The three patrol ships turned back with their right rudders to continue attacking the slave-transporting fleet. As for the Morning Star, it left the fleet and charged towards the Saint Cruz Merchant again.
"Captain, get ready! One more time! "
The instant they passed by the fourth-grade ship, the cannons on the ship fired one after another.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
This time, the outcome of the battle was slightly better. A 24-pound cannon shell finally hit the enemy's stern, but it still didn't penetrate its heart as expected.
It only penetrated a few cabins before falling diagonally into the sea. It didn't even manage to kill many people.
At the same time, the heavily armed cruiser was also struck by the 6-pound cannon installed on the battleship's stern. Although the heavy cruiser's hull was thick and didn't hurt at all, such a comparison was just too abnormal.
It wasn't something that could be explained by the fact that the cannoneers weren't proficient in operating them.
On the Saint Cruz Merchant, Captain Hobion, who had been standing at the command post from the very beginning, and Elvin looked at each other from afar. He saw that the Morning Star's heavy cannons had once again returned empty-handed.
Even though he was astonished by the cruiser's ferocious firepower, he still pulled himself together and laughed out loud as though he didn't care.
"Hahaha, in a naval battle, no battleship can sink the lucky Saint Cruz Merchant. Even a first-grade ship can't do it!"
On the surface, he was mocking the pirates on the other side, but in fact, he was reassuring the crew members who had nearly gone limp from fright from the Morning Star's firepower.
And his source of confidence was the [Ship's Bow Icon — Lucky Gold Coin] that had just been installed on the battleship.
It was a wooden angel with bare buttocks, holding a shiny gold coin with both hands.
[Effect: Solidifies Chain Accidents, allowing the battleship to have a certain chance of being immune to attacks (miss).]
Of course, although this immunity was powerful, it wasn't omnipotent. Close-range shooting was one of the most effective methods.
By minimizing the probability of accidental factors, the effects of the ship's bow icon could be greatly weakened.
After two probing attempts and a reminder from Milan, who was an expert in such matters, Elvin quickly realized this point.
Turning back, he saw that the three cruisers behind him had already beaten the slave transporting ship to a pulp. The Iron Bone, which was slightly slower than the other two, had already engaged in a tragic side-by-side battle with the enemy's fifth-grade ship, the Shaking Sail.
Battle cries shook the sky, scaring the enemy out of their wits!
"Roar —"
"Kill!"
In particular, the wolf howls made one involuntarily turn their heads.
Ever since the navy and pirates under his command had split up, Elvin quickly found a new material that was very suitable for making Animated Beast Skin. Then, he finally extended his demonic claws toward land creatures.
They were the Continental Gray Wolves that were everywhere in the northern forests of the New World during this period!
This was a type of large canine that lived in the northern forests of the New World. It could even be the largest wolf in the areas that humans had explored.
Its fur was grayish-white, and its average weight reached 90 kilograms. Its shoulder height was 90 centimeters, and its body length was 250 centimeters. Its bite force was 700 pounds.
Furthermore, unlike most large sharks that could be used to make Animated Beast Skin but liked to live alone, wolves formed packs and caught a large group of them at a time.
Furthermore, wolf packs were typically formed by family members of the same origin. Although the number of members in a wolf pack couldn't expand infinitely due to the strict hierarchy and territorial boundaries, the largest pack had close to 40 members.
This was enough for Elvin to make Animated Beast Skin, and it also greatly increased the production efficiency of the Animated Beast Skin.
This was especially so now that his second disciple, Calvin, had become an apprentice of the Animated School of Thought. He could assist Elvin in some simple auxiliary work, greatly increasing the production of Animated Beast Skin.
The pirate officers of the Iron Bone were the first batch of users of this Animated Beast Skin. At this moment, they had already transformed into hungry wolves in human form and pounced onto the enemy's warship, causing a bloody storm.
The escort team members, whose courage had long been worn away by their comfortable lives, were no match for them.
Elvin had already decided to slowly expand the scope of Animated Beast Skin equipment in the future and establish a series of assessment systems.
Other than the pirate officers, as long as one contributed enough, they would also be able to obtain this kind of powerful equipment with immediate effects!
His subordinates were making rapid progress, and he couldn't fall behind either.
It was just a slave-transporting fleet. Even if they had some tricks up their sleeves, the final outcome would definitely not change.
"Seize the upper hand and shoot at them at close range!"
Even though it had been changed to a patrol ship, the Morning Star, which was originally a third-level ship, was still not much shorter than a fourth-level ship.
Elvin had sufficient confidence that before the other party's ten 9-pound cannons, which were also exposed to the wind and rain, could unleash their might, he would be able to make the other party lose their ability to resist.
Whoosh …
Under the dual effects of the Monsoon Goddess and the Ocean Current Horn, the Morning Star drew a huge arc on the surface of the water.
The billowing black sails and the streamlined hull were like an elegant black swan gliding across the surface of the sea, once again approaching the Saint Cruz Merchant.
Compared to the patrol ship, the fourth-level ship, which could be considered clumsy, did not have the time to adjust its battle stance.
This time, the patrol ship's target was no longer the narrow stern but the starboard side of the battleship.
"All cannons, pay attention. Solid bullets, fire!"
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
When the Morning Star cut into a parallel position, the distance between the two was only a mere 50 meters. If they could miss even like this, Elvin would sink this bunch of trash into the sea without committing suicide.
This tactical adjustment also allowed them to finally experience the thrill of a heavy patrol ship crushing its peers!
Even with the protection of the Lucky Gold Coin, the battleship's destined outcome couldn't be changed.
Boom!!!
It was just a round of barrage, but the heavy cannons carried irresistible kinetic energy as they easily pierced through the Saint Cruz Merchant's hull. As they bounced, the lower deck and the cannons were reduced to a mess.
The large chain bullets fired by the 24-pound cannons on the open-air deck swept across the deck of the fourth-level ship, easily slicing off its front mast.
"Captain, bad news! Two parts of the waterline have been hit, and the lower deck is seriously flooded!"
Hobion's expression changed drastically. He had already realized the limitations of the ship's bow. It was no longer able to serve as a barrier for them.
He quickly shouted, "Warlock Rice!"
Hearing that, the skinny black-robed old man didn't say a word. His cold gaze swept across the Morning Star, which was still unleashing its firepower 50 meters away.
He took out a gourd-shaped flute from his robe and placed it by his lips. He then placed a pitch-black wide-mouthed clay pot by his feet.
Woo woo …
Amidst the deep and hoarse flute sounds …
Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!
The sudden hiss of a snake that resounded on the ship made one's hair stand on end.
At the same time, from the clay pot by his feet, a wisp of bluish-purple smoke with a foul stench darted out!
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